The nymphs I, II, III, and adult male and adult female stages of Mulcticola macrocephalus (Kellogg) (Phthiraptera, Ischnocera: Philopteridae), a monoxenous species of chewing louse infesting common nighthawk, Chordeiles minor (Forster) (Caprimulgiformes: Caprimulgidae), in North America, are described. Line drawings of whole nymphs and adults are presented, as are details of anterior dorsal head plates, metasternal plates, female subvulvar plates, and male genitalia. Ontogenetic characters exhibited during the postembryonic development of this species of chewing louse are described and discussed in relation to previous information in the literature.

Specimens of the New World genus Leschenaultia Robineau-Desvoidy (Diptera: Tachinidae) parasitise a wide range of lepidopteran hosts, including economically important pests. The female flies are attracted to volatile compounds released by host plants in response to the herbivory of caterpillars. They deposit microtype eggs on the leaves, which are then ingested by the hosts. We record a new host for L. bicolor (Macquart), obtained from Halysidota pearsoni Watson (Lepidoptera: Erebidae) in Ouro Preto, Minas Gerais, Brazil. The record is described herein and a comparative diagnosis for the identification of this parasitoid is provided, with discussion on similar species of the genus. The male and female terminalia of L. bicolor are fully described and illustrated for the first time. We also review and update the host records for Leschenaultia in an annotated host catalogue. At least nine species of Leschenaultia are recorded from 53 species of Lepidoptera, including the families Apatelodidae, Erebidae, Lasiocampidae, Noctuidae, Nymphalidae, Saturniidae, and Sphingidae. Finally, we provide an overview of host use and host associations.

Crop damage caused by fall armyworm (FAW), Spodoptera frugipera J.E. Smith (1797) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), has generated concern among agriculturists globally. In 2019, FAW was first reported in Sri Lanka, where it caused significant losses to corn crops. However, given that the two FAW biotypes – “rice strain” (R-FAW) and “corn strain” (C-FAW) – are morphologically identical, the biotype(s) present in Sri Lanka were unknown. The current study used the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I gene (mt-CO1) of FAW to biotype nine FAW samples collected in Sri Lanka. The resulting molecular phylogeny revealed that both R-FAW and C-FAW biotypes were present among the samples. In addition, we used the temperature-switch polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique to develop a gel-based molecular marker. Two fragments were successfully amplified by the newly developed marker ABUOP0002, with fragment sizes of 341 bp from R-FAW and 204 bp from C-FAW. This demonstrates that ABUOP0002 can serve as a diagnostic gel-based molecular marker to identify the R-FAW and C-FAW biotypes from samples already identified to species level as S. frugiperda through taxonomical keys and provides a possible alternative to more expensive sequencing-based assays.

Small carpenter bees (Ceratina calcarata Robertson) (Hymenoptera: Apidae) build their nests in both sunny and shady sites, so maternal decisions about nest sites influence the thermal environment experienced by juveniles throughout development. A previous study demonstrated that when larvae and pupae were raised in the laboratory at room temperature, those from sunny nests developed more slowly than those from shady nests. This suggested that bees developing in sunny nests slowed their metabolism or that bees developing in shady nests increased their metabolism. To test this hypothesis, we performed a field experiment in which bees nested in full sun, full shade, or semi-shade. We brought larvae and pupae into the laboratory to be raised to adulthood at room temperature and measured their metabolic rates (VCO2) at 10 °C, 25 °C, and 40 °C. As expected, bees had higher VCO2 at higher test temperatures, but significant interaction also occurred between test temperature and field treatment, such that bees from sunny nests exhibited higher metabolic rates at 40 °C. Because small carpenter bees frequently nest in full sun, adaptation to high nest temperatures may involve activation of thermal protection mechanisms at the cost of slower development.

Most studies about the European earwig Forficula auricularia L. (Dermaptera: Forficulidae) assume that four larval moults occur from hatching to adult. In this note, we use observational and quantitative approaches to reveal the presence of an additional intermediate moult occurring immediately after egg hatching. We then briefly discuss how this finding may open up new possibilities for follow-up studies to improve our general understanding of the taxonomy, biology, and evolution of this species.

Engelmann spruce, Picea engelmannii Parry ex Engelm. (Pinaceae), in the southern Rocky Mountains is composed of two distinct phloem monoterpene chemotypes that differ in relative abundances of multiple monoterpenes, particularly α-pinene and Δ3-carene (hereafter, the “α-pinene chemotype” and the “Δ3-carene chemotype”). Here, relative toxicity of these chemotypes is tested on spruce beetle (Dendroctonus rufipennis Kirby) (Coleoptera: Scolytinae), a phloeophagous herbivore that colonises trees of both types. Synthetic monoterpene blends representing each chemotype were tested across a range of concentrations (0, 10, 50, 100, 200, and 500 µg/L) in the lab, and probability of survival of adult beetles exposed to each blend was modelled using a logit function. Logit curves were solved to determine LC25, LC50, and LC75 of each monoterpene blend. On average, probability of beetle survival was lower when exposed to the Δ3-carene chemotype than when exposed to the α-pinene chemotype. However, both chemotypes were completely lethal to beetles at concentrations exceeding 100 µg/L. Adult body mass did not affect survival probability. It is concluded that spruce phloem chemotypes may differ in their toxicity to spruce beetles, with potential consequences for patterns of host-tree colonisation by spruce beetle.

A comprehensive biovigilance programme was undertaken in 2018 to monitor potential insect vectors of viruses of grapevines (Vitis vinifera; Vitaceae) in two vineyards in Québec. Two hundred seventy-four insects were collected using yellow sticky traps and sweeping nets. Collected specimens were first classified into orders, with special attention given to the Hemiptera order, which is the main group of virus vectors. Hemipteran pests were identified to species. Among these specimens, one adult of Rossmoneura tecta McAtee (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae) was identified, the first report of this species in Canada. Empoasca vincula DeLong, Erythroneura acuticephala Robinson, and Erythroneura cymbium McAtee, three other species belonging to the same family and previously reported in other Canadian provinces, were also identified for the first time in Québec. Further investigations are being undertaken to test the ability of these species to transmit grapevine viruses.

Outside of pest control reports, little attention has been paid to interior ecosystems in high-latitude regions. Opportunistic sampling of live arthropods captured inside the University of Alaska Museum Fairbanks, Alaska, United States of America allowed us to describe and analyse one such interior ecosystem. We document a minimum of 77 arthropod species over 18 years. Beetles, spiders, and booklice represented 80% of the total abundance. Of those captured, synanthropes consisted primarily of fungivores and detritivores, seasonals consisted primarily of predators and omnivores, and transients consisted primarily of predators and had greater diet and species diversity than the synanthropes and transients. January was the most common month for capturing synanthropes, September for capturing seasonals, and July for capturing transients. Four synanthropic species not previously known from Alaska, which appear to have breeding populations inside the museum, were found: Dorypteryx domestica (Smithers, 1958) (Psocodea: Psyllipsocidae), Cartodere constricta (Gyllenhal, 1827), Dienerella filum (Aubé, 1850), and Corticaria serrata (Paykull 1800) (Coleoptera: Latridiidae). Three transient and one synanthrope species previously unreported from Alaska, with no evidence of breeding populations, were also found: the click beetle Danosoma obtectum (Say, 1839) (Coleoptera: Elateridae), a spider in the genus Phantyna, probably the species P. bicornis (Emerton, 1915) (Araneae: Dictynidae), two Colobopsis sp. ant specimens (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), and the synanthropic spider Oecobius cellariorum (Dugès, 1836) (Araneae: Oecobiidae).

Gall wasps in the cynipid genus Diplolepis Geoffroy (Hymenoptera: Cynipidae) attack various species of native and introduced roses in Canada. Although gall forms are diverse, gall wasps are parasitised by highly concordant complexes of parasitoids and inquilines. Many species of gall wasps attack the same host plants and develop over the same periods in the season, suggesting that opportunistic parasitoids may be exploiting a range of hosts rather than specialising. We sampled larvae of Eurytoma Illiger (Hymenoptera: Cynipidae) from galls of D. variabilis (Bassett) and D. rosaefolii (Cockerell), gall inducers that develop fairly synchronously late in the growing season on leaves of Rosa woodsii Lindl. (Rosaceae) in the Okanagan Valley of central British Columbia, Canada. Galls were sampled at five different sites along a gradient from the north end of the valley to the Canada–United States border, a distance of 100 km. We extracted DNA, then amplified and sequenced the cytochrome b segment for each Eurytoma larva. We identified two well-supported clades that were differentiated by neither sampling location nor host. Instead, at least two species of Eurytoma, E. imminuta Bugbee and E. longavena Bugbee, exist at these localities, and both exploit at least two of the Diplolepis hosts found at these sites.

Understanding what drives insect movement is crucial to understanding how they might be affected by environmental or human disturbances. Methods that measure movement can be expensive, and few are available that do not rely on some sort of video footage. We developed a relatively inexpensive method that allows the user to see the full path of the individual insects within an arena after a certain amount of time, which can be captured with a photograph and later analysed with computer software applications. In our proof-of-concept experiment, we found that the ground beetle, Harpalus rufipes (Coleoptera: Carabidae), was more active in darkness and in light than in ultraviolet light and that it displayed different movement patterns under all three light treatments.